A fishing Day..

A fishing story..it was like hearing a bedtime story..narrated  while having spicy crispy fried mussels and king fish curry, the curry made him go back to his Mangalore  house, a sprawling haveli like mansion, teeming with cousins. Frank De Coelho,  a friend of ours had come home and while having lunch, the fish curry took him to his childhood home, and out came lovely memories.

A twilight beside the Chirakkal Chira with the Chirakkal RajaRaja

 From the Centenary Celebrations of Din Ul Islam..renewing ties of history

Singing a poem written by her husband, which she tuned herself

A cosy rainy morning..the skies are not pouring open, just slow consistent showers, the incessant pitter patter  makes you want to curl up with the works..a warm mug of chai, and a simple story book. If you have a window seat, to gaze  out on the rain washed leaves and bending boughs, you are blessed. What better day to visit Kolathiri raja, or Chirackal Raja, beside the wide Chirakkal Chira and hear stories of a lifetime. He is the current heir to the throne..a symbolic status, which ironically means nothing..and much too.  Descendants of the Ancient Mooshika kIngs, who ruled us for centuries and who brought about significant developments to North Kerala. We drove by the side of the historic Chirakkal chira.. a beautiful pond interspersed with lilies , the drizzle making it even more beautiful.  The muddy path was blissfully solitary….making the ambience serene. A fourteen acre, man made pond, which is a precious gift for mankind,  from the Chirakkal rulers , needs urgent clean up in order  to pass it on to the next generation.  The age old Shiva temple stood majestically facing this Chira, and on the opposite side of the pond, you can see two temples, The Devi temple and a temple dedicated to the Physician God , Dhanwanthari. The car slowed down when it reached the Folk Lore academy.. I saw a man coming towards the gate, waving to me, and  he was none other than The Chirakkal Raja. I would have found my way, and he needn’t have stood at the gate waiting for me..but that reflects his humility.

The morning sped past..minutes into hours..what I expected was a lazy chat,,but it was not at  all a lazy chat..not a chat even..they were lessons of life, pages of history and experiences and wisdom acquired through the ages . It was not a fairy tales or a fable..but  recordings of an era gone by.

Sri Raveenndra Varma was an eloquent speaker, his education reflects in his mannerisms and he willingly drove down memory lane for me and for the next few hours, time flowed  like a stream which flows in different speeds and frequencies, and meandered through variegated terrains, the twists and turns of life.

A powerful dynasty, Chirakkal Kolathiri, are descendants of the Mooshika dynasty, ..tracing  their ancestry to the first century A D, a history of great warriors and rulers ,one of the oldest aristocracies of India. In 1799, the kingdom was lost to Tipu sultan..and  royalty of Rs 1000/ was decided to be given to the rulers for their homeland, a sum not increased even after two hundred years. Time has turned it into a pittance now but which he receives even today, it is called Maalikaan. Cornwallis started the system when it was annexed to the Crown. I asked him about opulence of his family earlier…to which he replied, that their kingdom was lost two hundred years back, and so  Independence did not bring much changes to them.   They did not build opulent palaces, but the irony is, they built schools ..which has a good reputation even today. His ancestors were the richest landlords, and the lands were given to the tenants on lease, and the land tenacy act made them landless and the tenants owners. Is nt it sad? But a hard fact.He recalls that during the harvest season rooms and godowns were filled with grains..and after the tenancy act, they had literally starved.  The temples also were run with this money. 

Madayikkavu,a an age old temple dedicated to Madayikkavilamma, a powerful Goddess, and it is she who is the common link between many royal families of Kerala , as She is the Kula Devatha for these royal house holds.

 Sri Ravindra Varma was a man of multiple talents, graduated in arts, loved literature.. and, donned roles as diverse as chalk and cheese. An  M.A In History from Madras Christian college, Madras, he was tutored by the cream of educators, Anglo Indian teachers and  English teachers. Sri T.N Seshan the fiery  election commissioner  was his friend in College, and it continues to this day. After M.A,.he was doing research in” Crime and punishment of Madras”. Days when he was steeped in dusty crime files and sordid mysteries. Huge records of twisted and cruel minds, innocent lives, and tales of revenge.  One year into it, he received a telegram from his father stating that he had secured a job in Brennan College Tellicherry, as as a lecturer. He started immediately as per his fathers orders, only to find it was temporary post, for a year. Then he passed qualifying tests to Defence academy, Pune and secured a job there. Three years in Pune.. A covetous Central Govt job. But his father said he was feeling lonely here and what is life without twilights filled with prose and poetry? His father missed the poetry and story filled evenings and felt that the fabric of life was not measured with Govt Jobs, but gossamer threads of prose and poetry, the solace of comfort food churned out with love.. Came down, and he got a job as an accountant in Western India Plywoods, and  he retired as Chief accountant. He is also the recipient of Sangeetha Guru pooja Award from the Sangeetha Nataka Academy, in appreciation of his contribution to art.

Ravindra Varma receiving the Guru Puja Award

 I asked him about his life in Kannur. His wife, Shantha Kumari thamburatti  came in with steaming cups of tea, and biscuits and both of us dipped and dipped till the biscuits and tea disappeared. She hailed from the Beypore royal family and worked as a teacher In Chirakkal High School till retirement. She is musically talented, and sings beautifully. He had led a busy life, is a trustee of thirty eight temples. He still is a prominent person and a man of respect, an is invited to preside over many functions.  He had also used to lend his voice to dramas broadcasted in the radio. Varying decibels and emotions and characters came to life, and his voice resounded in thousands of houses through the radio.  He wrote..wrote verses and stories, translated the Bhaja Govindam the famous literary work of the great sage, Adi Shankaracharya  from Sanskrit to Malayalam, and published it himself, still available in Guruvayur bookstalls. .  Had written as much as 9 story ballets which due to his ignorance, had given away without taking copies for himself.. and it remains a nostalgic and painful  memory now.

Awards received over the years

The Chirakkal dynasty are the descenadants of The Mooshika dynasty who ruled Northern Kerala in Ad first century.  There  were 119 Kings in This dynasty. They ruled till Tipu usurped the throne but their presence in Indian History cannot be undermined. They were responsible for the beginning of trade, and commerce between the Arabs and The Portuguese.  And thus started the influx of the foreign powers in Kannur.  If they hadn’t welcomed the missionaries and given them land, Islam and Chritianity wouldn’t have entrenched  its roots here. And this unpretentious man in front of me, is a descendant of this illustrious clan. Till recently, the khaazi title of  a prominent mosque in Valapatnam was conferred by the Chirakkal Raja. Trade relations were given much importance and that’s how the Urbanisation of Kannur began, when he invited Vasco da Gama to Kannur.

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Srikantapuram was named after King Srikantan, and Valapattanam  was named after King Valabhan. 1799. kingdom was gone.

Every Kannurian must know the Arakkal Chirakkal story. Two princesses had gone to the stream to bathe, when the swirling currents pulled them down and one of the Princesses started to drown, and with the currents twirled her  clothing away. As luck would have it, the next few moments were a romantic slice of history. A handsome lad from The Arakkal family was passing by, and he immediately lent her his clothing and gave her his hand to pull her out. So as per wedding rituals..she had given him her hand and he had given her his clothing, and thereby they are man and wife. The wet princess stood at the entrance of the kovilakam  saying that she is already married and then the families met and the rest is history. I feel that the girl must have been smitten by the handsome lad.  The Chirakkal princess was given away in marriage  with pomp and all the formalities.  Half of the kingdom was given to her as dowry, and the Arakkal family was asked  to adorn her with  the title Arakkal Beevi which continues to this day. This must have happened around 800 years back.. all function are attended by both families to this day,.” this is religious  fraternity” he insists....a silver lamp which was given to Arakkal by them still burns there..the light of religious fraternity. A lesson for the so called secular India. Just one month back, he had been invited when the new Beevi took charge.

View from the Raja's house -
A 14 acre lilly pond 

The secular nature of the family can be seen if you see that they patronized the theyyams. Chirakkal family had patronized theyyams, though theyyams were the rituals  of the lower strata of castes. The royal families usually  patronize the refined arts such as Kathakali, krishnanaaam, koothus, etc. but theyyams were from Malabar and  they were performed bythe Malaya community, people who drank, smoked and ate non veg and most often illiterate. Theyyams, more than an art form has more religious significance, as The Gods are supposed to enter the bodies of the artists and prophecy and give guidance to the people, it is by learning and performing a certain set of mantras which are handed down verbally by the elders.  And nobody was there to patronize them. The artists were given  financial aid,  land, and conferred titles.  The title Peruvannan, and Panikker, were given from The Chirakkal Kovilakam . the honor of the  title ..for instance..it is like this..he has to pronounce Krishna Peruvannan..  Krishna Peruvannan ..Krishna Peruvannan and lo..the title is there to stay. Pattum valayum was given to these artists.. This bangle cannot be removed from anywhere except Raja Rajeshwara temple. 

Thirty five theyyams were made to perform In Chirakkal Kovilakam. And the royal members bowed their heads before these Gods .this reflects their humane ness, their large heartedness in those caste driven times.  He leads a calm and peaceful life without airs and graces with family and friends, overlooking the beautiful lilies  which spreads as far as eye can see.
A piece of good news before I sign off...look out for his book of poems which will be out shortly..